The Fairy Diaries
by Moose's Archangel
Summary: TVD has been Fairy Tail-ed; it's as simple as that.


**Summary: TVD has been Fairy Tail-ed; it's as simple as that.**

**I don't own anything, from the characters to the basic plot.**

**The chapters are done as each episode, some changes obviously, but I'm sticking to the basic storyline. Ignore every relation in Fairy Tail, the characters are who they are in this, so just clear your mind of your Fairy Tail knowledge! Characters may seem ooc. Every time it's 1****st**** person, it's Lucy's POV unless stated otherwise.**

**Edit: Okay, I've gone back over this. Fixed a few obvious spelling errors that where killing me and swapped out Erza with Lisanna and Gajeel with Cobra.**

**THE FAIRY DAIRIES**

**CHAPTER ONE**

**.**

**PILOT**

"_For over a century; I have lived in secret._

_Hiding in the shadows._

_Alone in the world._

_Until now…_

_I am a vampire,_

_And this is my story."_

The couple where normal enough. Out on a normal night, probably driving home after a night of entertainment and fun. They seemed happy, chatting away to one another while driving, smiles on both their faces.

It was dark, mist had started to creep across the road slowly, and almost unnoticeable until suddenly it was difficult to see the black road beneath the heavy layer, even through the harsh glare of the headlights.

"Where did all this mist come from?" she asked with slight worry tingeing her light tone, her happy smile slowly starting to fade.

"Don't worry, it'll all be gone soon enough," he replied with confidence, his eyes split from the road for a second to reassure his partner.

"Look out!" she screamed, in the moment his eyes had wavered, a figure had appeared in the road, he swerved to avoid the person, but it was too late, the car rammed into the figure, causing the woman to shriek and the man to yell in shock.

"Oh shit," he cursed, screeching to a halt and undoing his seatbelt with shaky fingers.

"We just hit someone!" she cried, her hands covering her face as if to block out the thought.

"Call an ambulance," he instructed, throwing open the car door and leaping out, quickly running to the fallen figure in hopes that whoever it was, was still alive and his day hadn't been ruined by killing someone. "Are you ok?" he called, crouching down beside the man, he noticed a rather large ring on the man's finger, it was blue and silver but too dark to make out much else about it.

He was about to check for a pulse, when the fallen man's arms shot out to keep him in place, he lurched upwards and sunk his teeth into his neck without so much as a blink.

The woman had managed to dial for the ambulance and was getting out of her car to check on her partner and the person they had hit, however, when she looked around, there was no sign of either of them.

"Darrell?!" she called out in a panic stricken voice, her hand reaching out to clutch the car for support as she looked around wildly for any sign of them.

A loud crash had her screaming and whipping around, there, lying on the car bonnet; was Darrell, blood soaking his shirt and coated his face and neck, his eyes where glassy and he wasn't breathing. She screamed again, turning tail and running as fast as she could. She stumbled, tears where streaming down her face from sorrow or fear she wasn't sure, but she didn't get ten meters before something grabbed her and she could barely utter a gasp as everything went black.

**~TVD~**

"_I shouldn't have come home._

_I know the risk._

_But I had no choice…_

_I have to know her…"_

"_**Dear dairy, Today will be different. It has to be. I will smile, and it will be believable. My smile will say: 'I'm fine, thank you. Yes, I feel much better.' I will no longer be the sad little girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh. Be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through**_,"

I stared at myself in the mirror, biting my lip. If I was going to _feel_ fresh, then I had to at least _look_ fresh. So today, I had decided to actually _try_. I had taken time to get ready, instead of throwing on the first thing that my hands touched. I had chosen (after forcing myself to spend the minimum of ten minutes looking) to wear a short sleeved light blue tank top with a white jacket over the top, dark washed skinny jeans and black converses. I had brushed my blonde hair till it was perfectly straight and pulled it up into a ponytail, then applied some light makeup, pink lip gloss and light eye shadow.

I _felt_ as if I actually looked good for a change. I mean, I have a body most girls would die for, and men would love to get a hold of, but it does nothing for me if I don't _feel _it.

Making my way down stairs, I heard the tell-tale sign of my Aunt Mira in the kitchen, busy as always. She was just rummaging in the fridge as I walked in.

"Breakfast?" I asked, looking around the kitchen with eager eyes, Mira turned around quickly, her bright blue eyes wide with fluster.

"I can make breakfast!" she sounded like she was scolding herself as she said it, for not making the food in the first place. I simply shrugged and wandered to the coffee maker, pouring myself out a cup. It was always like this in the mornings now; Aunt Mira would get herself all worked up and be bustling about the kitchen trying to do everything at once, while I was left to drink my morning coffee. In a few seconds, my brother would walk in…

"Coffee?" right on time, Romeo dragged his body into the kitchen, looking like a half-starved zombie, red rimmed eyes still half closed, hair still messy with sleep, clothes rumpled and drool still on the corner of his lips.

"First day back at school and look at me, totally unprepared!" Aunt Mira wailed; she _hated_ not being prepared, that woman was ready for everything, from going to sleep to going up into space, literally, but when it came to us, she looked as if she might break down. "Um, lunch money?" she suggested, trying to be ready, holding out two twenty's for both of us.

I shook my head, but Romeo on the other hand, glanced at me before taking both notes and stuffing them into his pocket. I sighed, fighting back the urge to say something, I noticed Aunt Mira struggling with the same problem, we both knew _that_ wasn't going to be spent on his lunch.

"Aunt Mira, shouldn't you be at work?" I asked, grabbing her hands to stop her from trying to stuff our bags full of food. Her eyes went wide and a quick look at her watch had her mentally cursing. "Go, we'll be ok," I assured her, pushing her arm so she was forced to move towards the door.

"Are you sure you don't need anything else?" she asked, looking over the two of us, I nodded and shoved her bag into her arms before forcing her to leave the house.

I turned back to see Romeo slipping his coffee at a hurried pace, tapping his foot on the floor. "Are _you_ ok?" I raised an eyebrow at him, reaching out to place my hand on his arm.

"Fine, come on, or we'll be late," he sounded annoyed, and he side-stepped to avoid my touch, walking past me, coffee mug still clasped in his hands.

I frowned, watching him go, then the TV caught my eye, two people reported dead, the sound had been muted but the head line screamed '_Animal Attack_', but I don't think I wanted to hear the details, I didn't want to ruin what was supposed to be a good day, a _new_ day.

**~TFD~**

Levy had picked me up for school today, with an interesting topic she seemed to have been dying to tell me about due to the fact she couldn't keep still and she had that grin on her face she got whenever something she deemed exciting had happened.

"Porlyusica's been telling me I'm _psychic_," she blurted out, her head turned towards me but kept glancing out the corner of her eye to check the road, her fingers gripped the steering wheel as she spoke. "I think it's crazy, she kept going on and on about it, and then something about my ancestors, but then it got me thinking… I mean; I predicted Obama," she pointed out, pointing her finger at nothing in particular in thought.

I noticed a graveyard as we past it, lost in thought, only just about hearing Levy say something about predicting how Matt Smith was going to regenerate into Peter Capaldi.

"Hey, Heartfilia! Are you listening to me?" Levy laughed, poking my arm and breaking me from my thoughts, I turned to her, embarrassed about being caught not listening to her… _again_.

"Sorry Lev," I smiled sheepishly, "I heard you, you were telling me…" I trailed off, rubbing the back of my head in hopes of stirring up the thought.

"That I'm psychic," she grinned, then turned away from the road again to focus on me, her eyes narrowed as she smirked, "And I see that you'll-"

She was cut off from saying anything else as something hit the windscreen, Levy jerked back turning the steering wheel sharply left to avoid the car that was coming, I sat ridged unable to move as I stared wide eyed at the car in front of us, my nails where digging into my palms which would leave painful looking marks.

The car skidded sharply as Levy slammed on the brakes, jolting the car to a halt; she turned to me, her eyes full of worry as I uncurled my hands and looked at my best friend.

"What was that?" she asked, "Damnit, Lucy, are you ok?" Levy looked even more panicked than I felt as her hands flailed about uselessly.

"No, I'm fin-" she cut me off with a shake of her head, not listening to my words.

"It was, like, a bird, or- or something," she mumbled, more as if she was reassuring herself than me.

"Levy, I'm fine," I told her, finally able to catch her eye and calm her down. "Besides, I can't be scared by cars for the rest of my life, can I? What would Lisanna say about that?" I nodded and she sighed, a one-sided smile pulling at her lips at my calm state.

"I predict," She stated firmly, "That this year, is going to be kickass," I only laughed and shook my head at her logic. "And I predict that all the sad and dark times are over, and you are going to be beyond happy," she told me, honestly sparkling in her big brown eyes, I couldn't help but believe her, Levy had that way about her, like she never lied and you could simply trust her with anything and everything.

We exchanged a grin before she re-started the car and pulled back out onto the road, I didn't miss the huge crow that was perched on top of the stop sign, '_odd, that bird is huge_' I thought to myself, then I remembered something about a bird that was an ill omen.

"Hey, Lev, its ravens that are bad omens right?" I asked, tearing my eyes away from the crow that had continued to stare at me, it sent unwanted chills down my spine at the way it had been looking at me.

"No, Porlyusica said ravens are protectors, it's crows that are the signs of ill omens," she replied without taking her eyes from the road.

"Oh," I bit my lip, maybe it was just a coincidence, but… something was off about that bird.

**~TFD~**

We arrived at school shortly after the whole car ordeal and headed straight inside to our lockers, Levy pointing out how she thought everyone was going to be like in class as they passed by, using her _psychic_ powers.

"Ugh, find a new man and a new phrase, this is going to be a long year," she whined, opening her locker and placing a few books inside of it. As the words spilled from her mouth, her eyes glanced behind me and she bit her lip, I frowned and followed her gaze to see Gray standing at his locker on the other side of the busy hallway. He was staring at us, or at _me,_ with what seemed to be regret and anger. I smiled at him, only for him to slam his locker shut and walk away.

Sighing, I turned back to Levy; she was staring at me with slight mocking pity in her eyes. "Do you think he hates me? He looks like he hates me, what'll I do if he hates me?" I bit the inside of my cheek and looked down, avoiding Levy's comforting chocolate orbs.

"Oh come on, just because you dumped him doesn't mean he hates you, I mean, for Christ's sake Lucy, it's _Gray_ we're talking about here, he doesn't have the capability to hate you," she laughed, placing her hand on my arm for a small sign of comfort. She was right, Gray and I had been friends for years, something as silly as this couldn't come between us.

"Lucy!" a yell sounded from somewhere close by, we both turned to see my other best friend running towards us, her short white hair whipping in the air behind her. She elbowed people out of the way and threw her arms around my neck, knocking me back into the lockers with a loud thud. "Oh my! Thank god you're ok! I haven't seen you since it happened, are you okay?" she pulled back, keeping her hands clamped down on my shoulders and staring me hard in the eyes.

"I'm _fine_, Lisanna, you're the hundredth person who's asked me that today," I reassured her, my own hands gripping her arms in attempt to loosen her grip on my shoulders.

"Are you sure Lucy? I was just so worried," she pulled me back into another tight embrace, my head being crushed against her shoulder.

"As I just said, fine," I responded, wriggling out from her grip and sending a scowl at Levy who was silently laughing.

"Well, if you're _sure_, I guess I'll see you later," Levy and I both nodded and Lisanna smiled before walking away, I turned to Levy and rolled my eyes, Lisanna could be so dramatic sometimes, but I loved her for it.

"Don't say anything, you didn't even try to help me," I warned Levy, who burst into a fit of laughter as we began walking in the other direction.

As we passed the office, Levy pulled me to an abrupt halt. "Well then, who's this?" she questioned, I looked over her head to see a boy standing in the office, I could see how Levy had stopped to stare, the guy had _pink hair_, how I didn't notice, I don't know.

He was standing in front of the desk; his back to us, talking to the receptionist, his clothing was slightly odd for a high school student, he had a thick, white muffler draped around his neck, a sleeveless black vest with orange trimmings and white slacks with black sandals, he seemed well built from the fact his arms where muscular but he wasn't overly bulky either. He seemed… very out of place, especially with that hair of his.

"What's up with that hair?" I tilted my head to the side, as if it would give me the answers by looking at it another way.

"It can't be natural right? But it doesn't look dyed either," Levy mumbled her own questions, tilting her head the other way and frowning lightly. The receptionist had looked up at the pink haired boy, her eyes narrowed as she shook her head, she saw the boy tip his head down, and the receptionist looked up as if in a daze, she flicked through some more papers.

"I sense mysterious waves," Levy spoke; I looked down at her to see she was grinning, still staring at the back of the boy.

"Oh really?" I shook my head, attempting to stop the smile at her attitude when I noticed Romeo duck into the boy's bathroom, looking jittery and pale. "Damnit, I'll be right back," I told Levy, hurrying towards the door Romeo had disappeared through. Glancing around to make sure no one was staring, I slipped inside, my brother was standing by the sinks, squeezing out eye drops into his eyes that where bloodshot.

"Romeo!" I strode towards him, grabbing his jaw to force his head down so we were eye level, though being younger than me; the boy had shot up over the summer holidays and was now taller than me, which was a slight disadvantage. "Are you kidding me? The first day and you're stoned!" I cried out, my anger flaring up as he pulled on my wrist to make me let go of his jaw.

"It's not like it's any of your damn business Lucy!" he yelled back, I began to feel inside his pockets, he must have it on him still, to use again later, but despite being drugged up he was still fast and strong, he grabbed my wrists to stop my movements.

"Where is it?" I growled, attempting to get my hands free from his grip.

"I don't have any on me ok?" he shoved me away, crossing his arms over his chest and setting his jaw, looking anywhere but at me.

I slowly let the anger simmer away and sighed, "I _know_ you R, this, this isn't you, ok?" I was desperate to hug him, to pull him against me and to wrap my arms around his body, to keep him safe from everything that's bad in this world. But I knew I couldn't, not just because we were standing in the men's bathroom, but because he _isn't_ that little boy anymore, despite everything, he doesn't, _shouldn't_, need protecting.

"I _am_ this person Lucy, deal with it," he muttered, walking past me with his shoulders set stiffly.

I slammed my hand down on the counter in frustration, I just wanted to cry, to go home and curl up under my blankets. But I couldn't, I was meant to be starting fresh today, so that meant no backing out and no crying, at least not on my first day.

Squaring my shoulders in determination, I turned swiftly and exited the toilets, only to walk straight into someone. A _hard_ someone, who's chest was bare. I frowned, and looked up, ready to apologise to the guy I'd just slammed into, when I saw his face.

It was _him_. The one who had been standing in the office, his hair was actually a pretty nice shade of pink, and it _suited_ him. Looking at his face, I had the sudden urge to touch him, he was _hot_; his strong jaw line, perfect nose and amazingly built body, made him all the more so, but his eyes where beautiful. They were depthless onyx black, with flecks of dark green that made him seem rather predatorily, especially when they narrowed down at me, like he was sizing me up.

"Excuse me," he coughed, and I suddenly realised I was staring at him, still standing in his way.

"I'm sorry!" I quickly apologised, attempting to slow my rapidly beating heat so I wouldn't faint from embarrassment. What happened next, shocked me greatly, I had expected him to scowl or get angry but…

"It's ok!" he laughed, and a grin split across his face, it had to have been one of the most adorable things ever. "But, uh, this _is_ the men's room, right?" he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand looking slightly awkward as he did so.

"Um… yeah, uh... I was just- I was…" I gave up trying to speak and hung my head, hoping I would just die rather than cause more of a scene, I nodded weakly and slipped past him, hurrying over to where Levy and Lisanna where standing, they were both staring open mouthed at the pink haired boy as I joined them.

"Can we please go to class," I mumbled, tugging on an amused looking Levy's sleeve.

**~TFD~**

The teacher droned on and on and _on_, and I was beginning to get bored, I had stopped paying attention to anything he was saying and was trying to ignore the heavy set of Gray's stare on my back.

I did however, sneak a glance over my shoulder towards the pink haired boy, whose name I still didn't know, and bit my lip to stop the smile that would probably make me look like a creep. I kept my eyes glued to his face, how could some look so… _perfect_? It was beyond me.

He must have noticed me staring as his weirdly beautiful eyes flickered over to me; I couldn't stop the smile this time and I saw a ghost of one pass over his lips. I hurriedly turned away, ducking my head so my hair covered my face. Not long after that, I felt my mobile vibrate in my pocket, with a quick look to make sure the teacher wasn't watching, I pulled it out and checked my messages.

_**Pinkie, staring at u.  
-Levy**_

I couldn't supress my grin as I slid my mobile back into my pocket and leant forwards on my desk in attempt to concentrate on the lesson.

**~TFD~**

I ended up in the graveyard after school, it wasn't unusual for me to end up here every now and again since it happened, and I found an odd sense of peace here that I couldn't get anywhere else. I sat with my back to a large tree, my diary propped up against my knees as I wrote.

"_**Dear diary, I made it through the day. I must have said 'I'm fine, thanks' at least 37 times, and I didn't mean it once, but no one noticed. When someone asks 'How are you?' They really don't want an answer.**_"

I sighed looking up, across from me, was my parents grave stone; I put my diary down and stared at it. I realised what had made me stop writing, it was the crow that had landed on top of the grave, and it stared at me through cold black eyes, as if judging me silently. It cawed loudly, making me jump and I stood up, thick, heavy, mist had begun to roll in without me even noticing, I had been so caught up in my own words and the bird.

I continued to crow loudly, and even when I shooed it away, it only flew to another grave stone. I began to panic slightly, grabbing my bag I backed away slowly from the bird, until I was sure I was a safe enough distance away, and then turned and hurredly walked away.

It was difficult to see where I was going, and at one point I could have sworn I saw someone moving in the mist, I managed to get my foot caught on one of the smaller grave stones and tripped, tumbling down a small hill to a concrete path. My hands shot out to break my fall and I felt my knees and palms take the impact, I hissed in pain and struggled to get to my feet. I brushed my grazed hands on my jeans and as I looked up, the pink haired boy was in front of me, making it the second time I was ambushed in the graveyard today, first a bird, now this guy.

"Are you ok?" he asked, his beautiful eyes flickering over my body to check for any damage.

"Uh, where you- where you following me?" I breathed out, frowning at him and gesturing up to the graveyard.

"No, I just saw you fall and came to check if you were ok," he hurried to respond, copying my gesture towards the small hill I had just fallen down.

"Ah, ok then, and you just hang around a cemetery do you?" I ran a hand though my hair, suddenly made aware of the stinging sensation of my hands, I ignored it.

"No, actually, I, was visiting believe it or not," he shrugged and I imminently felt guilty, of course, why else would he have been here.

"I'm sorry, I'm just… I think I may have hit my head, it's all seeming a bit, Silent Hill-ish, I was expecting the triangle head guy to appear next," I laughed weakly and saw he was still looking a bit awkward, maybe he hadn't seen Silent Hill. "I'm Lucy, by the way," I hurried to introduce myself to him.

"Natsu," he replied with a small grin, flashing those perfect white teeth again. His grin faded to a smile as he reached out slowly, carefully, and plucked a small twig from my hair. I felt myself flush lightly and smiled.

"Thanks," I fought hard not to smile like an idiot and I noticed a ring on Natsu's finger, it was unusual, but not unattractive, a silver band and silver tendrils that held a lapis stone captive in the middle, a silver _**N**_ was stamped in the middle of it.

He seemed to notice me staring at it and snatched his hand back, "It belongs to my family," was all he said, eyes full of uncertainty as he studied me carefully.

"It's nice, suits you," I smiled up at him, briefly but he suddenly frowned, looking down, away from me.

"Did you hurt yourself?" he asked, stepping away from me, I sent him a look of confusion before looking down at my palms, they were scratched and bleeding slightly, just barely, looking down at my covered knees I noticed my jeans had blood stains on them, I had probably bashed up my knees as well.

"It's nothing," I informed him, I'd had much worse before this.

"You should get it seen to," his voice had dropped and he turned away, almost completely turning his back on me, I wrinkled my nose at his behaviour.

"It's just a bit of blood, no harm done," I glanced down as I wiped my palms on my jeans; however when I looked back up again, Natsu had gone.

**~TFD~**

"_**I lost control today. Everything I've kept burred inside, came rushing to the surface. I'm simply not able to resist her.**_"

Romeo sat at the bar, one of his favourite places to be at the moment, especially seen as Meredy worked here. His eyes followed her every movement as she bustled around tables taking empty glasses and taking orders, he wanted to talk to her, but it seemed lately like she had been avoiding him.

As she walked past, he went to grab her arm, but he was to slow, Meredy was already heading for the table Gray and Lyon where sat at, taking their orders and it looked like she was paying a little _too_ much attention to Lyon. Romeo gritted his teeth and slouched back in his stool, five minutes later Meredy was back, he jumped up standing in her way.

"Look Romeo," she started, not even bothering to greet him, "I'm at work, you need to back off and stop following me around like a little puppy," she stated, attempting to get around him.

"Oh, so if you fuck puppies, why are you sexing it up with the big bad wolf over there then?" he shot back.

"Shut up! I don't need the whole world to know we hooked up a few times, on a drug craze I might add," she slammed the empty tray down on the bar top and looked him straight in the eye, "Listen, I like you ok, but you need to step down before you mess anything up between me and Lyon."

"Really? He's a total twat, he only wants you for your tits," he sighed in annoyance.

"And what do _you_ want me for?" she fired back at him, walking past him, knocking his shoulder as she went.

**~TFD~**

"His name, is; Natsu Dragneel, he lives with his uncle up in the old boarding house, he hasn't lived here since he was a kid; military family so they moved around a lot, he's a Gemini, his favourite colour is salmon pink and he has an odd obsession with fire," Lisanna stated, sipping her coke as she sat down at an empty table, Levy sat opposite her, a look that said she didn't quite believe what the silver haired girl was telling her.

"Oh really? And you got all that in one day?" the short blunette smirked, using her straw to stir her drink.

"Don't be silly, I got it in 3rd period, we've already began to plan our honeymoon," Lisanna grinned, her cheeks flushing red as she began to stare dreamily at nothing, lost in her own thoughts. Levy only raised an eyebrow at her expression and shook her head.

**~TFD~**

"I'm meeting up with Lev and Lisanna at Fairy Tail," I informed Aunt Mira as she passed, pulling on a black jumper as I went as it would no doubly be cold later and I didn't want to freeze.

"Wait!" she grabbed my arm before I could go any further and grinned lightly, before replacing it with a mock serious look, placing her hands on her hips she recited; "Don't stay out to late, it's a school night," she managed to finished without breaking her concentration before giving me a thumbs up.

"Heh, okay, nice one Aunt Mira, don't worry we won't stay out late," I told her, at least it would give her some comfort, knowing at least _one_ child would be home safely.

I turned around, heading for the front door, grinning at my Aunt's behaviour, she tried so hard and I loved her for it, she did her best, and I knew having Romeo around the way he was didn't really help her confidence much, but she always managed a smile for us.

I opened the door, ready to leave, only to be met with a bare chest, for the third time today. I bit my lip, my eyes trailing upwards until I met his eyes, which I think I'll never grow tired of looking at, and frowned in question.

"Uh, I was about to knock, I'm not some creep that likes to stand in front of girls houses!" he uttered, quick to answer to my surprise.

"Okay, I'm sure you're not," I comforted him, amused by his assumption of what he thought I was thinking about him being there.

"I came to say sorry, I was pretty rude earlier… at the graveyard," he trailed off and I nodded.

"It's okay, I totally understand, blood makes you squeamish," I instinctively rubbed my palms down my recently changed jeans, an uncomfortable feeling settling inside of me.

"Something along those lines, yeah, well, really I came to return this," he reached for the inside of his vest, pulling out a familiar blue book.

"My journal," I took it from him, holding it to my chest and sent him a gracious smile; "I must have dropped it, thank you."

"Don't worry, I didn't read it," he informed me, with a small smile.

"Why not? Most people would have," I laughed, he was pretty cute when he was like that, getting himself worked up about little things.

"Easy. I wouldn't want people reading mine," he gave me an awkward grin, as if he had just told a stranger a deeply personal secret… oh wait, he did, oops. "And any particular reason for the blue?"

"Ah, Tardis Blue," I grinned, then realised what he had said and my eyes went wide, "Wait, _you_ keep a journal?" he flinched slightly at my tone and I inwardly cursed, I hadn't meant to say it like that, it just shocked me is all.

"Well, yeah, memories are important, are they not?" he looked rather hurt as he spoke, closing himself up as if embarrassed. I bit my lip and changed the subject to a question that I probably should have asked first.

"How did you find out where I live anyway?"

My question seemed to startle him as he reached up to rub the back of his neck like he had done at school, "Small town?" he said it as more of a question but kept going, "I asked a few people, I figured at least one person had to know where you live, so… yeah."

"Oh, well thank you, I'm just gonna go put my journal away, you don't have to stand out there," I told him, quickly going back into the house, leaving Natsu standing on the front porch.

When I reappeared at the door, Natsu was still standing there, his hands on either side of the door frame, looking through the open door. "Where you going out somewhere? Am I keeping you waiting?" he asked, his tone tainted with the slightest signs of worry.

"Yeah, I'm meeting with some friends at Fairy Tail," I responded, exiting the house once Natsu had moved out of the way, and closing the door behind me, after a moment I looked up at him, "Do you want to come with?" I asked and saw the corners of his lips turn up in a smile.

**~TFD~**

"How's Lucy?" Gray asked, plonking himself down into the chair next to Levy's, she had been left by Lisanna who had gone off to who knows where, and had been alone until now.

"Gray, her mum and dad just _died_, how do you think she's doing, I know she's putting on a brave face but still," Levy replied, raising a brow at his question, he could be so… dense sometimes.

"Well… you're her best friend, do you know if she's seeing anyone?" he asked, glancing around before leaning closer to the blunette.

"Why yes Gray, she is, he's tall, dark, handsome and his name's _Nobody_, now be a good boy and keep your nose out of it, she doesn't want to be dealing with boys at the moment," Levy snapped back, rolling her eyes at Gray's clingy nature, he was sweet and everything, but got a bit annoying. "If you're so worried, call her."

"She broke up with me, it feels weird to call her," he replied with a slightly sulky tone.

"You're still her best guy friend Gray, calling one another shouldn't feel weird, it should feel natural," she told him, giving his arm a gentle pat, "Give it a bit of time."

Just as the words passed her lips, the doors to Fairy Tail opened and in walked Lucy, and beside her; Natsu Dragneel.

Gray shot Levy a dark look, "'_Nobody_', huh?" he stood up and made his way over to the two, standing before Natsu with a scowl on his face.

"Gray Fullbuster, Lucy's _'best guy friend'_," he quoted Levy's words and held out his hand as he spoke, Lucy had shot him a warning glare, of which he ignored.

"Natsu Dragneel," Natsu replied levelly, taking Gray's offered hand forcefully and giving it a quick shake.

**~TFD~**

Levy, Lisanna, Natsu and I ended up sitting at a small table, half empty glasses in front of us and it seemed as if Lisanna was determined to squeeze out Natsu's whole life story as she questioned him relentlessly, leaving myself and Levy to watch in mild amusement.

"So you were born in Magnolia?" she started, her fingers interlocked in front of her as she stared at him.

"Yeah, moved when I was younger, now I'm back again, guess I just couldn't stay away," he smiled half-heartedly and slouched back in his chair.

"Parents?" Levy asked, gazing at him with curious eyes.

"They, uh, passed away," I ignored how Levy's eyes flickered to me briefly, this wasn't about me, this was about Natsu, I didn't need to relate my life to his.

"Sorry," I smiled grimly, "Any siblings?"

I saw his smile falter before answering, "None that I talk to," he made sure to emphasise the fact he wasn't in contact with his siblings, as if it was a big deal, and once again I reflected on my own life, on Romeo and how much easier it would be if we stopped talking to one another… no, it would only make matters worse.

Lisanna glanced at me, she seemed to glower about the fact that the attention had been taken from her and, determined to get it back, stated, "Natsu! If you're new then you don't know about the party!" she grinned, but it seemed a little forced.

"Are you going?" he tipped his head towards me, once again the focus was back on me and I bit my lip.

"Of course she is!" Levy butted in and I sent her a scowl, she knew I wasn't planning on going to that party, it wasn't my thing.

"Looks like I'm going," I rolled my eyes, ignoring the small smile that appeared on Natsu's face.

**~TFD~**

"Damnit Natsu, you promised!" Igneel growled, stomping into Natsu's bedroom with a heavy scowl dominant face, a newspaper screwed up in his hand, tendons standing out harshly.

"What?" Natsu glanced around as Igneel shoved the paper into his chest, it would have hurt had he been able to feel simple pain such as that. "No, Igneel, this is an animal attack, I'm clean," Natsu shook his head, eyes skating over the front page, a man and woman had come up dead on the road by their car, '_**BODIES FOUND MUTILATED BY ANIMAL**_.'

"Oh please, I know what you do, you always tear the bodies up so everyone expects an animal attack, you promised me you had it under control," Igneel was seething in rage and Natsu took a step back, despite being stronger than his _uncle_ it didn't mean he didn't still scare him.

"I do Igneel, I promised, didn't I?"

"Magnolia's different from when you left it Natsu, there are people who still remember, and who are just waiting to strike if anything seems wrong! Why did you even come back? There isn't anything here for you," he shot back, eyes narrowing with anger.

"I shouldn't have to explain myself to you Igneel," Natsu growled, clenching his teeth together.

"Damnit Natsu, why? There isn't anything thing here for you," he repeated, "You don't belong here," he muttered, running a hand through his short red hair.

"Really? Well then, where _do_ I belong?" he glared at Igneel, eyes darkening.

"I don't know, that's your problem not mine, just know, coming back here was a mistake," the red haired man chucked down the newspaper and stalked out of the room, muscles stiff with rage.

Natsu snarled and threw his empty glass at the floor, it shattered into a million tiny little pieces, all showering down and creating rainbows that danced briefly in the light. He clenched and unclenched his hands, attempting to calm down, he often got angry for little reasons and it was becoming a problem, especially if he was going back to school, he couldn't afford to slip up in the middle of class.

Breathing out heavily, he made his way over to a cupboard, unlocking it and pulling the old wooden doors open, he was greeted with the smell of old parchment and ink, journals with all different dates stamped onto the spine filled the shelves. He pulled out one, particularly worn and undated, and flipped it open. It opened onto a page that held an old photo, black and white, of a woman who looked exactly like Lucy. Neat, spidery, writing was in the corner: _Ashley 1864_. Natsu's fingers brushed over the girls face with such rare delicacy that it surprised him; he closed his eyes, reminiscing in the past memories.

_.:Running up that road, running up that hill:. _

**~TFD~**

"The battle of Magnolia," the teacher, Wakaba Mine, perched himself onto his desk, eyes scanning the students like a hunting hawk, "How many casualties where the result of this battle?" he narrowed his eyes, looking for someone to answer the question, someone who hadn't been listening so he could openly embarrass them.

He stopped on the small blunette who was doodling in her pad, "Miss McGarden."

"…_A lot_…?" she guessed with a shrug of her shoulders, a few other students laughed and Gray ducked his head to hide his grin.

"Funny." Mr Mine nodded, without a trace of amusement in his eyes, "Mr Fullbuster, how about you?" he turned his sharp eyes onto Gray who only smirked.

"No, I'm good," Gray enthused with a nod.

"And what about you Lucy?" Mr Mine rounded on the blonde, pinning her down with a hard stare.

"I… don't know, sorry," she bit her lip, eyes flickering to Levy then back to the teacher.

"You know, I was _willing_ to be understanding for obvious reasons last year, but the personal excuses ended over the summer," he stated as if it meant nothing, jabbing his pen in her direction.

"346 casualties, unless you're counting civilians," a soft voice spoke up, Lucy and Mr Mine glanced over to see it was Natsu who had spoken.

"Correct," Mr Mine looked shocked, lips pressing together in a tight line, "Mr…?"

"Dragneel," Natsu put in quickly, his onyx-green eyes narrowing.

"Dragneel, any relation to the original settlers here in Magnolia?" the pink haired boy nodded, "Except there where no, civilian casualties."

"Actually, there were 27," he stated bluntly, "The soldiers fired on the church believing it to be housing weapons, but obviously, they were _wrong_." His eyes narrowed dangerously, staring harshly at Mr Mine. "The Founders archives are stored in city hall if you'd like to brush up on your knowledge," he tilted his head to the side, daring the elder man to argue.

_This_ drew some _ooh's_ from the class and Lucy couldn't hide her grin, as she eyed Mr Mine.

**~TFD~**

The night was bursting with chatter, music and laughs. Fire was burning and teenagers had red plastic cups in their hands.

Natsu wandered up the forest path towards the clearing, he didn't really want to be here, but… Lucy was going to be here. And with that on his mind, he focused his hearing; he could hear _everything_ from the sounds of the crackling fire to the hushed voices on the other side of the space.

"_-Lucy,_" he heard Levy's voice through the sea of others and drowned out everyone else's talk, focusing solely on the spot where Levy was standing.

"_Well ok, I suppose he _is_ a little cute_," Lucy responded and Natsu perked, maybe they were talking about him.

"_Natsu stared into her eye's piercing her very soul_," Levy put on a deep voice, trying to sound intimidating but her laugher was evident behind her words.

He smiled lightly and started forwards, until he was ambushed by Lisanna, imminently the smile fell but he quickly replaced it with a little force.

"Hey there, you made it," she chirped, a grin on her face and she smelt of alcohol. "Let me get you a drink," she offered a little too excitedly.

"Ah, no, I don't… drink," he muttered.

"Oh come on," she grabbed his arm and began to drag him off.

**~TFD~**

"Where is he? I don't see him," Levy asked, rising up to her tiptoes to try and see over the sea of heads that where milling around the party.

"I don't know," Lucy shrugged, "_You're_ the psychic, so you tell me," she teased, drawing mock shocked look from Levy.

"Oh so _now_ you believe me? Ok, give me a sec, I have to concentrate," she breathed, closing her eyes.

"No wait!" Lucy exclaimed, spinning on her heel and bending down to grab something off the floor, she held out an empty beer bottle with a teasing grin, "What? You witches need a crystal ball, right?"

"Screw you Lu," Levy grinned, but still reached out to take the bottle, as her fingers brushed against Lucy's hand, the blunette froze, her eyes seemed to glaze over as she stared with a look of stricken surprise at the air beside Lucy's head. Lucy didn't say anything, watching through worried eyes as Levy continued to stare.

Just as quickly as she'd gone into the trance like state, she snapped out of it, her eyes refocusing and a frown began to form. "Are you ok?" Lucy asked.

"I thought I saw… when I touched you, I saw a crow, fog… and a man," her frown deepened and she looked up a Lucy, "Nothing, I'm drunk," she forced a smile onto her face and took the beer bottle from Lucy. A crow, like the one that had flown into the car and that had been at the graveyard with her.

Levy shook her head and forced a smile, "You want another drink? Yeah, ok, I'll go grab one," she twisted around without waiting for a response and strode away, leaving Lucy standing looking very confused. The blonde frowned and turned back to see Natsu standing in front of her.

"Uh, hi," she raised a brow in surprise and tilted her head back slightly so she could look him in the eye.

"Huh, I did it again, didn't I?" his lips curled at the corners in a rough smile.

"Just a bit," she nodded, biting her lip and glancing away, in attempt to see any sign of her blue haired friend.

"You're… upset," it was a statement rather than a question as he tipped his head to the side to try and capture her eye again.

"What, oh no, it's Levy… she… I think she had a funny turn or something," Lucy looked back up at Natsu replacing her worry with a small smile, "You know, I'm sure she's fine, possibly just had one beer to many, you're here and that's what matters."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm here Luce," he reached out, almost hesitantly, and let his fingers brush over her cheek, pushing a loose lock of blonde hair behind her ear. _'Luce!'_ he'd given her a nickname, she felt her cheeks burn and ducked her head to hide the dash of colour across her cheeks.

"You know, you're kinda the most talked about thing in the town," Lucy smirked, stepping over a tree root; they'd wandered away from the party, more into the trees.

"Oh really, anything good?" he teased, and she missed the look Natsu sent her, a mix of amazement and soft longing.

"Well this and that, you know, mysterious new guy," she grinned, "With pink hair," she lifted her hand and ruffled his hair in amusement.

"It's _salmon_," he ducked away, swatting her hand away from his head, "And you've got that '_mysterious_' vibe going too, and sadness."

"That's twice in one night you've hinted I was _sad_, why? I'm I really that depressing?" she frowned, looking away from him and focusing on the forest floor.

"Well, we _did_ meet in a graveyard, that kind of hints a few things," he shrugged, smiling lightly, putting a joking tint to his voice in attempt to get her to look back at him and lighten the mood.

"Wrong, we technically met outside the men's room, looks like Mr Mine isn't the only one who needs to brush up on the facts," she laughed, her arm brushing his as they walked. "And can we drop this, we're supposed to be at a party," they stepped onto a wooden bridge that had lights threaded through the wooden railings.

"Ah, well, I never _was_ very good at party talk," he grinned half-heartedly and stopped, turning to face her. "But come on, tell me, maybe talking about it might help," he suggested.

"It's a long story," she replied in attempt to dodge the subject.

"I have _lots_ of time," he shot back, staring to walk forwards again; she followed after a moment's hesitation.

"Last summer… my parents car, went off a bridge into the lake, I was in the backseat and… I survived, obviously, but… they… didn't," she took a breath, looking away from him and down into the water that ran swiftly beneath the bridge, "And that's my story."

Lucy glanced over her shoulder, realising he had stopped walking, and paused, turning to face him. He had an unreadable expression cast over his face, beautiful eye's narrowed in deep thought as he looked at her, _really_ looked at her.

"You won't be sad forever Luce," he breathed and she nodded after a moment, some part of her so desperately wanting to believe his words despite everything that had happened.

**~TFD~**

Else were, deeper into the forest away from prying eyes, Lyon had Meredy pinned against a tree, his hands gripping at her, their bodies pressed against each other as his lips pressed roughly against hers. His hands where steadily making their way up her body, bringing her shirt with them.

"Ly, please, I _don't_ want to have sex against a tree," she laughed breathlessly as he began to kiss down her neck, biting and sucking as he went. "No, Lyon, stop it!" she attempted to push him away as he continued to try and undress her, ignoring her protests, "I said no!" she yelled.

"Hey! The hell is going on?" Romeo had made his way over to them, a frown crossing his face, "she said stop man."

"You know, you're really starting to piss me off," Lyon growled, stepping towards the young Heartfilia, a menacing scowl overtaking his features.

"Cut it out, Lyon, back off!" Meredy jumped between them, her back to Romeo as she held her hands out to Lyon, blocking him from the younger boy.

"Holy shit, Meredy Fullbuster says no," Lyon laughed in disbelief, eyes widening in mock surprise. He shoved his way between them and stalked away.

"I didn't need your help!" Meredy rounded on Romeo, jabbing her finger against his chest. "He was just drunk."

"_I'm_ drunk, am _I_ throwing myself at you?" he demanded.

"No, you just want to _talk_, '_get to know me_'," she all but snarled, "See into my soul, and screw, and screw _and screw_ until you're _done_ with me," she was on the verge on tears now, just holding herself together. "And don't even try to deny it, it's what I _know_." And with that, she was walking away; her head low and shoulders slumped.

**~TVD~**

"Levy seems like a good friend," Natsu stated, leaning an arm on the wooden railings of the bridge, his body still facing Lucy as she leant back against it.

"The _best_, she means everything to me," Lucy corrected, smiling up at him.

"And Gray, can't seem to take his eyes off you," he commented, his own eyes flicking over to the party, where Gray was standing with Lisanna, Lucy also glanced over, to see he was correct, Gray was talking to Lisanna but he was staring at her and Natsu.

"Gray's been my friend for as long as I can remember, and we started dating because… we… I thought we could be more, I guess I kind of felt like I owed it to him… I don't know, it sounds stupid," she shook her head, ridding the image of Gray's distraught face as she broke up with him, from her mind.

"It doesn't sound stupid, but what happened?" he asked.

"My parents died, and… everything changed," she responded simply. "And Gray and I… well… it wasn't… there wasn't any…" she struggled to finish the sentence, to find the word that was missing, to fill the gap.

"Passion," he put in helpfully, an awkward look crossing him, morphing his expression into something new, something unknown to Lucy.

"No… no, there was no _passion_," she nodded, trailing off, finding herself lost in his eyes, unable to form anymore words. She felt, _complete_, looking at him, gazing into his eyes, filling something in her heart she didn't even know she was missing.

And her stare was broken as his face shifted; veins under his eyes turning black and raising up under the skin, his eyes seemed too darken and his stare intensified, turning predatory.

"Are you… okay?" she asked, frowning, "Your eyes," she tilted her head to the side, trying to get a better look.

"What?" he sharply looked away, rubbing his eyes with his fingers, "Yeah… yeah, it's nothing. Are you thirsty? I'm going to get us a drink," he used the same excuse as Levy had, leaving no room for argument as he walked away, crossing the rest of the bridge.

**~TFD~**

Meredy made her way through the forest, stumbling over roots and rocks as she went, she was trying to find her way back to the party, but her drink hazed mind was struggling to remember the way. Had she seen that tree before?

She didn't notice the mist slowly crawling along the ground, seeming to eat up the forest floor as it went. Meredy stopped, glancing around, the hair on the back of her neck began to rise and goosebumps rose along her arms, the feeling of someone watching her was intense, making a cold shiver shoot down her spine.

"Romeo?" she called out tentatively, "Lyon? Whoever it is, it's not funny!" she turned back around to continue walking. She heard something behind her and whipped around, eyes scanning the trees, there was someone out there, "It's not funny!" she repeated, but her voice wavered, slowly turning back around, she saw something… someone.

She was about to call out to them, but he moved, quicker than her eyes could follow, and everything went black before she could utter the slightest sound.

**~TFD~**

Lucy ended up back in the mass of the partying students, alone, after Natsu had left she had seen it pointless to stay there alone, when she could have been with her friends, drinking and laughing, forgetting about her worries for just one night.

"Hey, looking for someone?" Gray wandered up to Lucy, a small smile coming to his handsome face, he was looking slightly awkward, head bent forwards and hands shoved deep into his pockets.

"Hi," Lucy reached out and gently touched his arm, but he flinched away.

"You know, when we broke up, you said it was because you needed some time alone," he stated, eyes narrowing.

"Gray…" she sighed, biting her lip and trying not to look into his dark blue eyes.

He ignored her, "You don't seem so alone to me," when Lucy did finally look at him, she saw disappointment and regret swimming in his narrowed eyes. She was stumped for words, not wanting to believe what he was saying, "I just want you to know, I still believe in us, I still think there's _hope_," he stated then walked away, leaving her standing there.

"Gray," she whispered, hurt and guilt coursing through her veins, she hated the way he could do that to her, with just a look from those eyes had her feeling all the bad emotions due to what she had done to him.

**~TFD~**

Natsu had watched the whole interaction between Lucy and Gray, had heard everything and seen how hurt she was now his back was turned. He sighed, and began to walk towards her, ready to comfort the girl that was slowly starting to plague his mind.

Before he could even get halfway to her, Lisanna jumped into his path, again for the second time that night, a lopsided grin on her face. "Hey," she chirped, "Have you tried the spirit shots yet?" she asked.

"Uh, no," he said, his voice distracted as he glanced over her head towards Lucy.

"Well come on then, I'll help you if you want," her eyes dropped to his lips before she tore them away, forcing herself to look back at him, her voice had lowered to a sensual tone as she stepped closer to him, invading his space.

"Look, Lisanna, you seem great and all, but, we aren't going to work out," he tried to smile, lighten the situation without trying to seem rude as he stepped past her, Lisanna's smile dropped and her eyes followed his form as he made his way over to Lucy who was perched on the railings of the wooden gazebo that the bonfire was lit under.

"I was wondering who'd swooped you up, now I know," she smirked, gesturing with her gaze towards Lisanna.

"Is she like that with all the guys?" he asked.

"Only the hot ones," she laughed, drawing a smile from the pink haired boy. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Romeo, wandering around, obviously looking for someone. "Damnit," she cursed, her good mood dropping.

"What is it?" he followed her look towards the boy.

"My brother," she grumbled, sliding from the railing to her feet and starting to walk towards the spot where he'd disappeared through the trees.

"Want any help? I could-" he began but Lucy cut him off with a look.

"Trust me, you don't want to witness this, it could get ugly," she turned back and kept walking. "Romeo! R, where are you going?" she yelled after him.

"Lucy just fuck off, I don't need you to babysit me," he yelled over his shoulder, he was caught momentarily off guard and caught his foot under an uprooted root, he fell forwards before he could catch himself and landed directly on top of a body.

It took him a moment to realise the face he was staring at, "Meredy?" he called tentatively, his eyes lowered, seeing the scarlet liquid that was dripping down her neck and staining her shirt. "No…" he hurriedly got to his feet.

"What?" Lucy stepped towards, catching Romeo as he stumbled back against her, "Oh god, no," she breathed, eyes widening and her hand shot up to cover her mouth. Romeo dropped down to his knees, all but falling over the body, he was about to place his index and middle finger on her neck to check for a pulse, when her eyes shot open and she struggled gasped in a mouthful of air.

"Somebody help!" Lucy cried, entering back into the clearing where the party was going on, Romeo close behind her, Meredy clutched in his arms.

"Meredy?" Gray shot upwards at Lucy's cry, eye's seeking out the body in Romeo's arms, everyone had stopped everything to try and get a look at what was happening, all trying to see the body and hushed cries where echoing through the clearing.

"Levy, call an ambulance," Gray shouted as Romeo set her down on one of the benches, Lyon rushed over, keeping the other students at bay as they tried to get closer.

"Her neck, something bit her, she's loosing so much blood," Lucy cried, pressing her hands against the wound to try and stop the flowing blood.

"Meredy! Meredy, listen to me, open your eyes," Romeo called, his tone high and wavering with panic.

Gray managed to glance up long enough to catch Natsu staring with such calm intensity, it was scary. Natsu slowly backed away, parting the crowd and then turning to run.

**~TFD~**

Natsu sprinted up to the huge house, his head reeling with worry and questions, he hadn't attacked that Meredy girl, so someone else in Magnolia was doing it, there was someone else here who shared the same burden as him, and he had a horrible feeling he knew who it was.

He pushed open the doors and stumbled into the house, Igneel was sitting at his desk to the right when he entered, his head rising to see Natsu's worried face. "What happened?"

Natsu shook his head, "Someone else was attacked Uncle Igneel, and it _wasn't_ me," he growled, turning and striding towards the stairs, taking them two at a time as he went, he entered his room, slamming the door behind him.

For a second, he stood completely still; he could feel it, something _wrong_, and something _evil. _A gust of wind hit him, and slowly, turning his head to the side, he saw the double doors to his balcony, open. A loud squawk echoed through the room and a big black crow glided into the room. His eyes followed the bird as it perched onto the wooden support frames, Natsu's eyes darkened and sucking in a sharp breath, he looked back at the open glass doors.

"Erik," the single word past through his lips with such venom, he shocked himself, but he narrowed his eyes at the man that was stood on the balcony, his spiky maroon hair waving slightly in the soft breeze, his tanned skin seemed to shine eerily in the moonlight, sharp green eyes, that where so dark they were almost black, where narrowed with poorly hidden hatred and a cold smirk pulled at his lips.

"Hello, _brother_."

**~TFD~**

After the short, unwilling, greeting; Erik had strode into Natsu's room as if he owned the place, fingering every little thing, opening boxes and picking up things that were scattered across Natsu's desk, all the while, said boy stood stock still in the middle of his room, onyx-green eyes following his brother's every movement.

"What's up with the crow?" he asked, jerking his head towards said bird that was now stalking along the metal railings of the balcony, cawing softly to itself, yet not taking off.

"I prefer snakes, but they can't fly and don't quite give the same effect as birds," he commented blandly, then continued, "Haven't you seen my skills with the fog?" he asked, firing back his own question instead of answering Natsu's.

"When did you get here?" Natsu growled, he _had_ noticed how the fog had been rolling in more thickly than usual, and now he knew why.

"Well now, I could hardly miss my little brother's first day of school, could I?" a snarky grin spread across his face as he turned to look at the shelves, running his fingers across the battered spines.

"It's been _15 years_, Erik."

"And thank fucking god for that, damn, I couldn't stand another minute of the 90's it was getting boring," his grin didn't waver as he sauntered away from the books and back towards the old wooden desk, flicking through bits of paper. "Mind you, it suited you, with your pink hair."

"_Why are you here_?" Natsu pressed, a low growl rumbling in the back of his throat, drawing Erik's attention back to himself.

"Aw, can I not miss my little bro?" he faked a hurt look, pressing his hand flat against his board chest and fighting the urge to smirk again.

"No, you_ hate_ places like this, you find them _boring_ cause there's nothing for you to _do_," he spoke each word with sharp precision, stressing hate and boring to prove his point and try to draw the truth from his brother.

"Oh don't worry about me, I've kept myself… entertained," his face morphed into a smug expression, looking rather like the kitten who had got the cream.

"Really? Igneel suspects me, you know, and you left that girl _alive_ tonight, maybe you're losing your touch," Natsu shot back, shifting his weight to his other foot and trying not to lose his temper with his brother.

"Damn, that could be a problem," he nodded, his trademark smirk pulling at his lips again, "…for _you_," he added thoughtfully.

"Why are you here _now_?" he rephrased his question, narrowing his eyes at the maroon haired man in front of him, who was lounging back against the desk looking rather comfortable.

"Now, now, I could ask _you_ the same thing," he mocked a disciplining look, looking down on his younger brother. "But I'm fairly certain I could guess, and get it right in _one, little, word_," he straightened up and walked towards Natsu, taking, slow, deliberate steps. "_Lucy_."

**~TFD~**

There where ambulances, police cars and animal control vans parked up all over the clearing, red and blue flashing lights washing out the peaceful, natural, light of the moon and harsher bulbs still wound into the gazebo's wooden support beams.

Gray stood by with a strained expression, watching as two men hoisted a stretcher into the back of the ambulance, without hesitation, he climbed in after them, not wanting to leave his sister to have to go to the hospital by herself.

Lucy watched with worried eyes from the wooden cover, leaning back against a bench, her heart went out to Gray, it just all seemed to happen to him, he was always the one in pain, the one left behind.

She heard footsteps approach, and turned to look over her shoulder as Levy appeared at her shoulder. "We were going to go over to Fairy Tail… get a coffee and wait for some news," she shrugged one shoulder, her own worry seemed to shine just as brightly in Levy's brown orbs.

"I have to take Romeo home, I might come a little later," Lucy bit her lip and gave her best friend a strained smile.

"Look, there's no _way_ I'm psychic, I _know_ that, but what I do know, is that whatever I saw, or whatever I think I saw, it was only the beginning," everything about the short girl was serious, from her look to her tone, and it made Lucy think back to the crow, to Meredy's wounds and how she'd seemed dead yet had still been alive even after losing so much blood.

**~TFD~**

"She took _my_ breath away too, you know," Erik stated, glancing up at Natsu, mocking him, daring to deny what he already knew. "She's a dead ringer for Ashley," he glanced over his shoulder at the pink haired boy, raising his eyebrow at him, just begging for him to argue. "Does it work? Being around her, does it make you feel _human_ again?" he teased harshly, a dangerous grin appearing as Natsu tensed up.

"She's not _Ashley_," he spat each word, emphasising each syllable.

"Well, let's hope not, that could be disastrous, especially with how it ended," he lost his grin, becoming more serious as he spoke, turning to glare at Natsu. "Now tell me, when was the last time you had something stronger than Thumper?" he questioned.

"I _know_ what you're trying to do Erik, and it's _not_ going to work," Natsu spat out, stepping away as Erik took another step towards him.

"Really? Don't you ever crave it? Sometimes just want to let go and take it?" Erik shoved him roughly, desperate to get a rise out of the younger brother. "Come on, _together_, like the old times, I saw a couple of _delicious_ looking girls out there," he purred, "Or we can just go straight for Lucy, I know you're desperate for her."

"Stop it!" Natsu snarled, snapping back and shoving against Erik's chest to force him away, his temper dwindling dangerously low.

"Just imagine what her blood will taste like!" Erik growled, throwing his arms out wide, "Because I _can_, and I simply can't _wait_ to sink my teeth into that delicate little neck of hers!" he was pretty much yelling now, simply calling for his brother to retaliate.

"I said stop, damnit!" Natsu howled, launching himself at Erik, ramming into his hard body and flying through the window, shattering the glass and they fell.

Natsu hit the ground, landing heavily in the middle of the shards of glass; the fall could have been enough to kill a human easily. The pink haired boy groaned lowly and slowly heaved himself up to his feet, dusting off his clothes and pulling out a piece of glass that had wedged itself into his hand with a hiss.

"I'm impressed, not very graceful, but I was, _pleasantly_ surprised," the mocking smirk was back in full force making Natsu's anger begin to boil again as he watched Erik lazily lean back against one of the trees in the garden. "I was _loving_ the whole face thing," Erik screwed his face up into an imitation letting out a pathetic mock growl.

"_Wherever_ you go, a trail of dead bodies follows," Natsu straightened up, stepping closer to Erik, who seemed unbothered by the comment.

"Obviously, I mean, that's a given," he shrugged completely at ease with Natsu growling in the background.

"No, Erik, not _here_, I _won't_ let it happen," Natsu held his ground against his older brother, staring defiantly at him, refusing to back away this time.

Erik frowned, tilting his head to one side in question, "You won't _let_ me? Well, I take that as an _invitation_," he grinned, showing off sharp, white, teeth.

"No Erik, can't, for just _once_, can't we just give it a rest?" Natsu changed, going from growling to an almost pleading manner, gesturing with his hands.

"I _promised_ you an _eternity_ of _misery_," Erik seemed honestly surprised by Natsu's suggestion, shrugging his shoulders and stressing each word with great, desperate, need, trying to get it through Natsu's head that he could _never_ give anything up. "So, I'm just keeping my word."

"Just _stay away_ from Lucy," he was desperate now, just off from begging his brother.

The elder brother hesitated, before focusing on Natsu's hand, his smirk was back, "Where's your ring?"

"What?" he lifted his hand, to see Erik was right, the heavy ring that sat on his finger, was no longer there, he rubbed his fingers over where it should have been, as if it would somehow still be there.

"Tsk, sun's coming up in a few hours, and poof," he rapidly opened his fingers, palm up, to motion his _poof_, "Ashes to ashes," he went on lazily, unbothered by his brother's worry. "Oh, relax, it's right," Erik closed the space between them and held his hand out, "here."

Natsu's own hand shot out, not taking the chance, and grabbed the ring, he slipped it back onto his finger, but while he was distracted, Erik's face shifted into that of a hunter's, his hand slammed into Natsu's neck, a snarl ripping through his chest as he lifted him up before throwing him to the floor.

"You should know better than to think you were stronger than me, you lost that battle long ago, when you stopped feeding on people," Erik spat, narrowing his eyes down at him, filled with only cold hatred for his brother. "I _wouldn't_ try it again." They heard a shuffling sound from inside the house, and a light flicked on, "I think we woke _Uncle_ Igneel up."

Erik smirked and span around, heading towards the house whistling loudly.

**~TFD~**

Lucy headed over to Romeo, her shoulder brushing against his; he was sipping from a half empty bottle of beer, he simply looked emotionally wrecked. "You ok?" she asked, reaching out to place a hand on his arm, only for him to shrug her off. "Aunt Mira's on her way," she informed him, "And just to let you know, those guys over there, are the police," she smiled lightly.

Romeo only ignored her and took another deep swig of his beer, being the rebellious teenager he thinks he is. "People don't remember our parents are dead R, they don't _care_ anymore, the pity stopped a long time ago, they have their _own_ lives to live and the worlds moved on, and we have to move with it or we're going to get left behind."

"Oh really, and your idea of moving on is sitting in that graveyard alone, writing in your dairy, I've _seen_ you," he fired at her, and Lucy looked down briefly, he was right, who was she to be telling him to move on, when she herself, was still gripping to the past.

"Mum and dad wouldn't have wanted this," was all she said, shaking her head and Romeo looked away, tears beginning to prick in his eyes and he was desperate to hide them.

**~TFD~**

Levy sat facing Lisanna at Fairy Tail; both girls held their heads in their hands and Levy was staring at Lisanna as the latter made patterns in salt she had poured onto the table, trying to distract herself from the looming truth.

"I don't think Lucy's coming," Lisanna grumbled, rubbing her fingers against her temples in hope of ridding herself of the splitting headache.

"Keep drinking your coffee, it'll help," Levy pointed out, noticing her friend's discomfort. "I want to go home, but I can't until I've gotten _you_ home."

"Why didn't he go for me?" Lisanna suddenly asked, looking up at Levy and pushing her fingers through her tangled hair.

"I-I'm not even going to go there," Levy replied, closing her hands around her own coffee mug and giving Lisanna a solemn nod.

"I'm inappropriate and I always managed to slip up and say the wrong thing, but _Lucy_, always says the _right_ thing, and she has guys swooning over her without even trying," she was starting to edge into hysteria, which was probably due to her intoxication, but it was starting to scare Levy, "And _I_ try, and _nothing_, no one wants to even know."

"It's not a competition Lisanna, Lu isn't trying to upset you," Levy tried to reassure her, but at her first words, Lisanna had quietened down, a look of understanding crossing her face.

"Yeah, it is."

**~TVD~**

Gray sat by Meredy's bed, his night blue eyes pained and he had dark shadows under his eyes from stress. He was gripping Meredy's hand between his, willing her silently to wake up, he needed her, she was all he had apart from Lucy and even the blonde, he felt like he was losing.

He could never win, there was always someone better, though having broken up with Lucy, he still saw hope for the two of them to be happy together, but now that _Dragneel_ kid had swooped in and stolen Lucy right before his eyes, and there was nothing he could do about it.

His thoughts were shattered as he saw Meredy's eyelids flicker, as if she was trying to open her eyes, and his hands tightened around hers.

"Oh god, Meredy," Gray whispered, shifting forwards on his chair so he could brush her hair behind her ear.

"Gray…" she murmured.

"No, don't try to talk, you have to save your energy, but you're ok now, you're ok," he trailed off, pretty much talking to himself by the end of his sentence, he bowed his head, dark hair brushing his sister's cheek as he let out a sigh. Meredy was alive and awake.

"_Vampire_," she whimpered, eyes barely focusing on her brother's face as she spoke. Gray looked up again, frowning, maybe he'd heard wrong or she was simply delusional, but what a weird thing to be thinking about.

**~TFD~**

"_**Dear dairy, I couldn't have been more wrong. I thought that I could smile and nod my way through it. Pretend like it could all be ok.**_"

"_**I had a plan. I wanted to change who I was. Create a life as someone new. Someone without the past.**_"

"_**Without the pain.**_"

"_**Someone alive.**_"

"_**But it's not that easy. The bad things stay with you.**_"

"_**They follow you. You can't escape them. As much as you want to.**_"

"_**All you can do is be ready for the good. So when it comes, you invite it in. Because you need it. I need it.**_"

I put down my pen and journal and turned to look out my window, he was standing there, and hands shoved into his pockets, a desperate look adorn his face. I felt it, that urge to be near him, to be in his arms, it was so strong inside of me, it was like a magnet pulling me towards him.

I leaped to my feet and ran for the front door, pulling it open, Natsu was there, standing in the door way, eyes flickering over me before returning to my eyes.

"I know it's late, but I _had_ to know if you were okay," his words where breathless and desperate like his gaze.

"It's funny, it seems that's all anyone seems to ask me lately," she replied, the irony in his words made her want to laugh, but she couldn't, she knew that's what he was asking, he really, truly wanted to know if she was okay.

"And what do you tell them?" he asked simply, raising one shoulder in a half shrug.

"That… I'll be fine," she nodded, her reply as simple as his question.

"And do you ever mean it?" she noticed how his eyes where rimmed with red, as if he hadn't been sleeping, or he'd been crying, and she wandered what was the cause behind it.

"Come back and ask me tomorrow, and I can reply honestly, cause then we can talk…" she stepped back, her hand closing around the side of the door, "Would you like to come in?"

He could seem to stop the grin that began to form on his face, "Yeah," Lucy moved to the side and Natsu tensed, before finally stepping through the entryway.

_.:Don't let me go, don't let me go, don't let me gooo:._


End file.
